The Revisiting: Mass Effect 1

 Analysis, Video Games  6 Responses »
Apr 192013
 

Today I’m shaking things up a bit in my weekly “Retrospective” column. Instead of looking back at a game I never played, fitting it into a modern context, I thought I’d play a game that I did play and loved again after nearly five years. Instead of evaluating its validity without an ounce of nostalgia, I thought I’d use nostalgia this week a a vehicle to drive my analysis of design. After all, Mass Effect as a franchise has exploded since this first effort, and what started out somewhat humble has since grown into a behemoth in the gaming spectrum.

Mass Effect - Travis - 3

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Laevatein’s Campfire Tales: The Naughty or Nice List in Games

 Commentary, Video Games  No Responses »
Dec 242012
 

Hello everyone, it’s Laevatein, and I’m back from the dead! Or for a more mundane answer, I’m back from my hiatus. Anyway, it’s Christmas Eve, and Santa is probably still going over his list to see who’s naughty and who’s nice (he’s gotta check it twice, after all). You know the drill though, whoever’s nice gets good gifts, and whoever’s naughty gets coal (or Windows phones or whatever people consider lousy nowadays (I’m joking about the Windows phones part)). Now, as a guy who writes about games, I think talking about how morality works in games is a pretty fitting choice for a post on Christmas Eve. I mean, how much more meta can you get than Santa?

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Review: Jade Empire

 Review, Video Games  No Responses »
Oct 082012
 

I’m sure you may be wondering why I’m reviewing Jade Empire.  ”This game’s pretty old, so what’s the deal, Laevatein?”  Truth be told, I suppose there’s neither rhyme nor reason behind my choice this week.  I recently finished it for the first time, so I guess now’s as good a time as any.  Anyway, Jade Empire is Bioware’s fifth game, and is probably their most unique one of all, at least in terms of setting.  It’s also important as Bioware’s first original IP.  In many ways, it’s pretty unique, insofar as Western RPGs go.  I often like to think individual RPGs need to be more unique, too.  However, I think Jade Empire is a pretty good example of why uniqueness alone doesn’t cut it.

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Retro Review: Baldur’s Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast

 Review, Video Games  No Responses »
Sep 032012
 

Last week, I reviewed Baldur’s Gate.  I explained that, while the game was very light on actual roleplaying and plot (and characterization was practically nonexistent), there’s some pretty good gameplay in spite of the pathfinding issues (and my general dislike of low level D&D combat).  However, it was a very important title when it came out, as it’s often credited for resuscitating the cRPG genre (even though Fallout technically did come out a year before).

Tales of the Sword Coast, Baldur’s Gate’s only expansion, is not as big as some other expansions are.  Rather than continuing the story in some way, Tales of the Sword Coast introduces four new areas (and opens up one area previously inaccessible in the original), with a few side stories here and there.  I went in to Tales of the Sword Coast expecting some throwaway stories and some more general mid-level combat (not that I would’ve complained, of course).  However, what I did get took me by surprise.

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Point of Contention: The “Favorite” Game

 Commentary, Video Games  1 Response »
Aug 292012
 

When it comes to determining our video game preferences, there are always going to be as many irrational factors thrown in as there are rational. What truly influences our choice? Does the single prized game in every enthusiast’s heart just ride a wave of nostalgia alone? In all probability, the scales are different for each individual. Some are constantly revising their “favorite” game or list of games. Others hold on to one game forever, never allowing anything else to come close. Join me, as we investigate this topic on this week’s Point of Contention.


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Retro Review: Baldur’s Gate

 Review, Video Games  3 Responses »
Aug 272012
 

Disgruntled by recent RPG releases, and amidst the recommendations of your peers, you find yourself looking back to an earlier era, an era of grand adventures and excellent roleplaying.  Tracing the ancient Bioware clan’s lineage back to its origins, you stumble upon the very beginnings of Bioware’s rise to power: Baldur’s Gate.  Ever the curious individual, you set out on a journey of your own, journeying to discover the secrets of Baldur’s Gate’s success.  Eventually, you find a fellow traveler who calls himself only “Laevatein”, who is willing to recount to you the secrets of Baldur’s Gate’s strengths.

Greetings traveler!  Seems like you’re interested about Baldur’s Gate!  Well, I’ve got a few opinions about it myself.  Just to warn ya, I’m not the most knowledgeable sort of individual, having grown up without Baldur’s Gate’s influence, but I figure my opinion’s worth telling.  So, with that, grab a seat, get close to the fire, and have a swig or two of this great mead, for my tale’s a long one. Continue reading »

Mass Effect 3 Extended Cut DLC: Is It Enough At This Point?

 Commentary, Video Games  3 Responses »
Jun 272012
 

It’s a widely known fact that Mass Effect 3 kicked up arguable the largest controversy among gamers in quite a while.  Funnily enough, Bioware initially stood by their original endings, but as time went on, they couldn’t ignore the complaints much longer, and decided to meet the fans halfway by giving them clarification.  They promised to expand on the endings, and even throw in some results of player choice, but they weren’t going to change the endings.

While fans who thought the ending was fundamentally wrong probably weren’t going to enjoy this, even from the very beginning (and Bioware admitted this), other fans are probably still curious about these expanded endings.  Let’s face it though; they couldn’t get any worse than the original endings.  Funnily enough, while I myself couldn’t bring myself to really even care about the original endings in the slightest, I feel like the new ones approach decency.

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Second Opinion: Mass Effect 3

 Review, Video Games  No Responses »
Apr 022012
 

Greetings Moar Powah, since I’ve finished reviewing the older sci-fi RPG trilogy, and finished playing this recent one, it’s about time for me to review the game! Anyway, so Mass Effect 3 is the third game in the series, and concludes the story, supposedly. You may have noticed that it was reviewed by another writer earlier. It’s also got some massive fan backlash over a few particular things (I’ll expand on that later). So how does one of this year’s most anticipated games play out?

This cover is kind of funny, given Shepard's track record with atmospheric reentry.

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The Courtroom: Liara T’soni Figure Controversy and A Look at Female Sexuality in Video Games

 Analysis, Anime, Art, Comics, Commentary, Video Games  7 Responses »
Nov 102011
 

Whew.  This topic is one that has really piqued my interest.  A few months ago, I posted something about a Liara T’soni figure by Kotobukiya.  I thought it was great (despite my usual anti-love for Shunya Yamashita).  However, little did I know, that many Bioware and Mass Effect fans were less than enthused about this figure.  I first heard about the controversy a few weeks ago on the website Go Make Me a Sandwich, a video game blog run by a feminist named Wundergeek (here’s the exact post about the Liara figure which had a picture linked from MP which is how I found the site to begin with).  Let me just say I was intrigued with the site; I read through about half her blog in one night to gain a better understanding of her thoughts and feelings.  After reading through a good portion of her material, I was able to come to a fair conclusion.  I respect her opinions and her enthusiasm; however, I don’t agree with a lot she has to say.  And that’s fine. That’s why they’re called opinions.  But before I go any further, I would like to address the Liara figure controversy first. Continue reading »

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SIYM Presents: Bioware Pulls a Bioshock?

 Analysis, Video Games  No Responses »
May 112011
 
“Hand over the collector base . . . would you kindly?”

I’m fairly certain that the good-goes-bad plot-twist was attempted long before Ryan Andrew’s epic man/slave monologue in Bioshock; however, seeing as this narrative element has resurfaced on more than one occasion since my time with Rapture, not to mention how severely fanboy I am towards Mass Effect, I figured it be interesting to discuss this issue. Hey, Portal 2 pulled the same trick (*spoilers*). It’s gotta be good.

Could you imagine if Bioware actually decided to go for the ultimate irony and take everything Shepard  has relied on/believed in and turn it upside down? I’m not just talking about the cigarette-budding, vodka-tanking, bazillioanire “Illusive Man,” what if EVERYTHING you knew was a lie? What if Shepard really did die after the Mass Effect 2 intro? Could Shepard be a clone? (a fascinating suggestion found in the immaculate Bioware forums)? Was Wilson innocent? Has Shepard’s existence been reduced to following orders and living in submission? Yeah, a little extreme I’ll admit. I’m in no way suggesting that Bioware will COMPLETELY rip off Bioshock’s “would you kindly” revelation, but huge releases are no strangers to being “inspired” by their peers. Don’t believe me? How about Crysis and Halo: ODST? Ya know, the whole dropping-down-on-a-mission-with-your-squad-and-SUDDENLY-something-goes-wrong-and-your-whole-team-is-separated. How about Modern Warafe 2 and The Rock (movie)? Ya know, the whole epic-blazing-firefight-in-the-bathroom-because-that-is-totally-badass. Hell, what about Portal and Darksiders? Ya know . . . portals?

Anyway, let’s get serious here. It would be no surprise to me if the Illusive Man ended up being a total D-Bag and turned on you. But hey, let’s play the irony card again! What if Bioware pulls a “Harry Potter” and the BAD isn’t so bad after all (Snape FTW!). There really is no way to tell until the finale launches in 2012, but the possibilities are oh so exciting for fan like myself. Hopefully, many of you have played and enjoyed Mass Effect as much as I have. If not, it’s never too late. Get started now. Hell, you don’t even need both games. Jump in wherever you feel like entering the series. The Mass Effect team has done a commendable job in making the franchise as accessible as possible. Just remember that you can import your files from game to game. Not only does stress continuity but it makes the experience that much more personal and consistent with all the decisions you make.

As far as irony goes, I really hope that Bioware doesn’t pour it on too heavy (if that’s what they plan to do). Although they have no intentions of “punishing decisions” from their fanbase, it would be utterly depressing if everything I worked for went to hell. Let’s say that Miranda Lawson (my “sidequest”) never really abandons the Illusive Man when you encounter him for a final time at the end of ME2 and is secretly a mole that gains your trust. What if Cerberus is actually in league with the Reapers? I’ve heard this quite a bit from some random sources lately, but I don’t buy it. Come on, that’s too easy. An organization with a “sketchy” reputation and an even more “sketchy” leader has been secretly collaborating with the ultimate threat? Plausible actually now that I think about it. Let’s Bioshock it! Cerberus rebuilds Shepard but secretly implants some sort of mind-control to keep him in check! When the time is right…BOOM! . . . “would you knidly?”

Speculation and nothing more. Looking forward to E3 2011! In the meantime, how about some catch up with Mass Effect’s lead producer? Say hello to Casey Hudson.

-Fifth Fleet Out-

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